Modify

Modify #59: What's Your Payne Threshold? Part Two

In our last column we checked out a couple of single-player mods for Remedy Entertainment's 2001 third-person shooter Max Payne. We're going to stay with the damaged detective this week and examine two add-ons for the game's 2003 sequel, Max Payne 2: The Fall of Max Payne.

One is a total-conversion mod that began life as the opening chapter in a planned new storyline while the other provides a comprehensive makeover for the game complete with new graphics, character models and combat effects.

If you haven't paid Max a visit in a while, these add-ons could offer some extra incentive to do just that.

Weighing in at a healthy 358MB, Elements Of Style (EOS) came to life because its maker thought Max Payne 2 was too stale in the gameplay department (that was never my take but some of the mod's features intrigued me so I downloaded it anyway). All of these cumulative changes are too lengthy to list here but I'll try and give you the two-minute tour.

EOS sticks to the original Max Payne 2 storyline and chapter structure but jazzes things up with new combat effects (kung fu, bullet trails, tons of smoke), weapons improvements, and over-the-top blood and gore. The biggest change, however, is a complete reskin of our hero -- both in the regular 3D game environment and the connecting cut-scenes. Max now looks less like a 1940s film noire protagonist and more like some gang-banger Russian Mafia type replete with opulent jewelry and contemptuous sneer (not entirely sure where they were going with that look).

As well, the gunplay is decidedly more violent. So much so that any bullets that find their target will splatter copious amounts of blood in every direction while simultaneously generating enough gun smoke and flying debris to completely obscure your vision. These effects are something of an acquired taste but after a while you'll get so used to them that the original Max Payne 2 will seem positively subdued in comparison.

There are also some new sound and visual effects (shinier characters), altered (shakier) camera perspectives, and a myriad of specific gun tweaks (like recoil) for added realism. Some of these changes don't work exactly as advertised -- I had to employ a cheat code to get the kung fu moves to work and I still haven't figured out where those throwing knives that are supposed to sub for Molotov Cocktails are hiding -- but the features that do work add a distinct new flavor to the game. Enough, in fact, to make me want to follow this blinged-out new Max all the way through to the end once again.